Unable to refuse, Wen Miaomiao accepted the pill with a smile, her eyes curving into crescents. "Thank you, Senior Sister."
She carefully stored the bottle but didn't leave, standing in place with a hint of hesitation on her face.
Su Luo Wei asked, "Is there something else?"
Wen Miaomiao knew that Su Luo Wei didn't like getting involved in troublesome matters, but there was indeed something she wanted to discuss.
After a moment of hesitation, she said, "There is one more thing... When I was getting the pills from Uncle Yunfei, I noticed some commotion there. The dispute was between two inner disciples of Qionghua Peak, and it seemed quite serious. They said they would take it to the Disciplinary Hall."
Su Luo Wei's expression remained calm as she said indifferently, "Jiang Ye is on duty today. Any disputes within Qionghua Peak can be handled by her."
Wen Miaomiao's face showed a trace of concern.
Remembering what Senior Sister Xie Hanzhu had told her before going into seclusion, Wen Miaomiao hesitated before adding, "One of the people involved is Meng Shuying. I remember hearing from Senior Sister Xie that you have a history with her…"
Hearing Meng Shuying's name, Su Luo Wei's previously nonchalant expression became serious.
Xiao Ba had mentioned that in the original story, Jiang Ye and the original Su Luo Wei had teamed up to bully Meng Shuying quite harshly.
Although Su Luo Wei had not involved herself in Qionghua Peak's disputes in this life, it was clear that Jiang Ye still didn't like Meng Shuying.
Su Luo Wei frowned slightly.
She didn't like Jiang Ye.
She had reviewed many case files from the Disciplinary Hall, especially those handled by Jiang Ye.
It wasn't difficult to see that Jiang Ye didn't care much about evidence or fairness, letting her personal biases dictate her actions.
The only reason she remained in the Disciplinary Hall was due to the support of Min Lanmeng and Yu Qing.
Now that Meng Shuying had fallen into her hands, if no one intervened, wouldn't she be at Jiang Ye's mercy?
Su Luo Wei's expression darkened as she summoned her spirit sword, preparing to head to the Disciplinary Hall.
Seeing her about to fly off, Wen Miaomiao quickly produced a sword from nowhere, slapped a talisman onto it, and the sword wobbled into the air without needing spiritual guidance.
"I'll go with you, Senior Sister."
Su Luo Wei glanced at the spirit sword under Wen Miaomiao's feet and asked, "You can fly a sword?"
"No," Wen Miaomiao shook her head repeatedly, then answered honestly, "It's a sword-flying talisman given to me by Uncle Yunfei."
Uncle Yunfei?
Su Luo Wei raised an eyebrow.
Uncle Yunfei was notoriously stingy, even reluctant to give the Sect Master any spiritual pills or talismans, yet she had willingly given Wen Miaomiao a sword-flying talisman.
If the circumstances weren't so pressing, Su Luo Wei might have given Wen Miaomiao a thumbs up.
No wonder she was the protagonist—Wen Miaomiao naturally won people over without even trying.
Compared to her, Meng Shuying was like night and day.
As they flew towards the Disciplinary Hall, Wen Miaomiao briefly explained the situation.
Apparently, Uncle Yunfei was busy today, so she had called a few disciples to help distribute the pills. Somehow, a mistake was made during distribution, and a mid-grade spiritual pill went missing.
This was no small matter.
There were six disciples involved—two from Qionghua Peak, two from Yanmo Peak, and two from Baizhan Peak.
Uncle Yunfei had divided them into three groups and handed over the pills for further distribution. However, after the pills had been passed around, one was missing.
The group that lost the pill was the one from Qionghua Peak.
Neither disciple would admit to taking the pill, and they even started fighting on the spot. In a fit of anger, Uncle Yunfei had sent them both to the Disciplinary Hall.
When Su Luo Wei arrived at the Disciplinary Hall, Jiang Ye was sitting in judgment. Three people stood before her, two of whom were wearing the robes of inner disciples from Qionghua Peak.
Although it had been three years, Su Luo Wei immediately recognized the disciple on the right as Meng Shuying.
She had grown taller and thinner than she had been three years ago.
The weight that Su Luo Wei had painstakingly helped her gain during their time on Yanmo Peak seemed to have disappeared.
She stood tall and straight, dressed in ordinary inner disciple robes, like a pine or cypress tree.
But her hair was a bit messy, and the peachwood hairpin that had once held it up was broken in half, with the remaining piece hanging loosely in her hair.
There was another person in the hall, a figure in black exuding a strong medicinal fragrance.
With her arms crossed, she stood off to the side, looking impatient—it was none other than Uncle Yunfei.
Sensing someone enter, Yunfei turned her head to glance at Su Luo Wei, raising an eyebrow in acknowledgment.
She then turned back to Jiang Ye and said, "As long as the pill is returned, I won't care about anything else."
Jiang Ye, sitting at the desk, smiled apologetically. "Don't worry, Uncle Yunfei. Qionghua Peak will certainly give you a satisfactory answer."
Then she turned serious and addressed the two disciples below, "Think carefully. Was there anything unusual during the distribution of the pills? It's best to resolve this matter quickly to avoid embarrassing our peak."
Su Luo Wei stepped into the hall, her voice as cold as winter's snow. "Since you've entered the Disciplinary Hall, you should follow the rules. It's the Disciplinary Hall that should give Uncle Yunfei a satisfactory answer."
At the sound of her voice, Meng Shuying flinched slightly but quickly composed herself.
She lowered her head, staring at the green tiles beneath her feet, her ears quietly straining to catch the sound of approaching footsteps.
One step... two steps... three steps.
Getting closer.
Even before Su Luo Wei reached her, Meng Shuying caught the familiar scent of lily of the valley—a scent so faint, yet like a creeping vine, it had wrapped around her for over a thousand days and nights.
Su Luo Wei walked across the green tiles, passing between Meng Shuying and the other Qionghua Peak disciple.
Her sleeve brushed lightly against Meng Shuying's hand, and her fingers subtly twitched.
When Su Luo Wei reached the desk, Jiang Ye slowly stood up, asking in an unhurried tone, "What brings the Deputy Head here today?"
She emphasized the word "deputy," hoping to provoke Su Luo Wei into leaving.
But Su Luo Wei, seemingly unfazed by the taunt, replied calmly, "I heard there was an issue with Uncle Yunfei's disciples, so I came to take a look."
Jiang Ye's expression stiffened, but she continued, "It's not a big deal, just that a mid-grade pill went missing while some inner disciples were helping Uncle Yunfei distribute them."
As soon as she finished speaking, the other disciple stepped forward and bowed to Su Luo Wei. "I am Ning Yutao from Qionghua Peak, and this is my junior sister, Meng Shuying. Today, while distributing the pills for Uncle Yunfei, we somehow ended up missing one.
The entire process was handled only by me and Junior Sister Meng, with no interference from others!"
As she spoke, she fixed her gaze on Su Luo Wei, her eyes bright as if she had revealed everything she knew, without hiding anything.
Su Luo Wei glanced at her, then turned her gaze to Meng Shuying. "Meng Shuying, I want to hear from you."
Senior Sister wanted to hear from her.
Meng Shuying's hands clenched into tight fists, her nails digging deep into her palms, yet she felt no pain.
No one knew how much self-control it had taken for her not to follow when Su Luo Wei had walked past her.
She lowered her head, squeezed her eyes shut to clear her mind, and then opened them again.
Her gaze didn't dare settle directly on Su Luo Wei; instead, she let her eyes sweep around the hall before finally looking at her.
Senior Sister was still the same, her expression cool but with a faint warmth in her eyes.
As Meng Shuying looked at Su Luo Wei, Su Luo Wei was also silently observing her.
Compared to three years ago, Meng Shuying had changed.
The awkwardness of youth had faded, and her features had become more defined.
Her eyebrows were like distant spring hills, her lips like peach blossoms in March.
But the most striking were her eyes—black as ink, filled with deep shadows when she looked at others.
But when she looked at Su Luo Wei, a special light shone in them.
Just like before.
Those happy days spent together on Yanmo Peak felt as if they were just yesterday.
Meng Shuying gazed at her Senior Sister, even entertaining the thought:
If she reached out and grabbed Su Luo Wei, she could return with her to Yanmo Peak and continue living as they had before.
But…
Now, she was trapped in a difficult situation herself—how could she dare drag her Senior Sister down with her?
Even so, if she couldn't be with her Senior Sister, she refused to let herself be corrupted in front of her.
Meng Shuying quickly made up her mind.
"That's not what happened," she said.
Her gaze was sincere and firm, as if she had made an important decision in that moment.
Su Luo Wei nodded, indicating for her to continue.
Ning Yutao, standing beside her, suddenly felt a sense of dread. She turned to glare at Meng Shuying, her eyes full of threat.
But Meng Shuying didn't even glance at her and continued in a steady voice, "While we were distributing the pills, Ning Yutao left the Jade Light Hall under some pretext."
She paused, then added, "I did not steal the pill."
She only said "I," not "we."
The distinction was clear.
Ning Yutao immediately jumped up, pointing at Meng Shuying. "You're slandering me! The pill we lost was a Qi-Gathering Pill. I've already reached Foundation Establishment—what use would I have for it? But you haven't yet—of course, you're the one who stole it!"
Yunfei also frowned, looking Meng Shuying up and down with suspicion.
Jiang Ye, catching Yunfei's skeptical look, slammed the table and said loudly, "That makes sense."
She turned to Meng Shuying, her expression hostile. "It must have been you who took it."
Yunfei's face showed a hint of surprise at how quickly Jiang Ye had come to a conclusion.
Worried that Qionghua Peak's reputation might be tarnished, Jiang Ye quickly added, "Uncle Yunfei, you should know that although Meng Shuying is a disciple of our peak, her heart has never been with us."
As she spoke, she shot a mocking glance at Su Luo Wei.
Seeing Jiang Ye siding with her, Ning Yutao grew bolder and chimed in, "She's never considered herself part of Qionghua Peak, so it's no surprise she would do something to disgrace us."
The two of them worked together, but Meng Shuying remained unmoved.
She didn't defend herself or react to their accusations; she just stood there quietly, watching Su Luo Wei.
Her lips pressed into a stubborn line, her eyes showing complete trust. The contrasting emotions in her created a unique aura.
Su Luo Wei lowered her gaze, her expression growing colder as if contemplating how to handle the situation.
But in her heart, she had already decided.
"According to sect rules—" She raised her eyes, looking at the people in the hall, her voice as cold as frost.
"Those who steal should be expelled from the sect."
Hearing her words, Meng Shuying bit her lower lip, as if wanting to explain something.
But because she trusted Su Luo Wei completely, she didn't speak.
Su Luo Wei gave her a deep look, then turned to Yunfei and said, "So, I would like to ask Uncle Yunfei to use her secret technique to search the souls of these two disciples. Then we will know who is lying."
Su Luo Wei: Don't worry, my dear. I'm here.